Just focus on creating a calorie deficit – that’s the only way to lose weight and always will be.

Eating once per day just happens to be a great way to create a deficit that many people can actually stick with.

For example, let’s say you need to eat 2000 calories per day to lose weight.

Diet #1 has you eating 3 meals and 2 snacks.

Diet #2 has you eating one meal.

In the end of the day, calories are exactly the same.

You’re just splitting your calories up a lot more in Diet #1.

That’s it. There is no magic. Just simple math.

5 reasons why you should eat one meal per day

I originally came across the idea of eating one meal per day from the Warrior Diet back around 2008.

At that time I was brainwashed by all the “eat 6 meals per day or die” BS and the Warrior Diet was my first foray into intermittent fasting.

I’m not saying it works for everyone, but if you love to feast every single day, have more energy, and potentially be 200x more productive during the day, then maybe this something you should give a shot.

Here are 5 reasons I recommend eating once per day:

Reason #1: Increased energy

How many times have you eaten lunch only to feel super tired 2 hours later? It sucks.

We’re all told lunch is supposed to give us this magic boost of energy, and maybe it does for some people, but I’ve found that most people just fall into a 2pm slump where they eat lunch and their productivity shoots down the drain.

When you fast throughout the entire day, you experience this amazing surge of energy that lasts the entire day.

Reason #2: Never feel deprived when dieting

One of the many reasons people fail at diets is because they don’t get this sense of satisfaction with what they’re eating and how much they’re eating.

When you follow the conventional 6 meals per day model, you have survive on a couple hundred calories every few hours.

At the end of the day, you just never feel satisfied.

You feel like something is missing…

Ironically, eating once per day solves this problem for most people.

The act of fasting throughout the day is a very powerful appetite suppressant, so when you have your massive feast at the end of the day, you practically feel “stuffed” every night.

Reason #3: More time & more productivity

Imagine how much more work you could get done if you didn’t have to worry about eating during the day.

No more worrying about that mid morning snack, no more stopping at subway during lunch, and no more 2pm energy slumps.

All this time you save can now be used to do more productive things that truly matter (like looking at pictures of cats online).

Reason #4: EVERYTHING tastes better

Fast the entire day then eat a grape.

Just one grape.

I guarantee that grape will be the best tasting grape you’ve ever had in your entire fucking life.

Look, I don’t know the scientific reason for why food tastes so much better after a fast, and frankly, I don’t care.

But some of the best meals in my life have been after a long fast.

Reason #5: Because eating cake every night is awesome

Cake is good. But not this much cake.

You know what’s awesome? Cake.

You know what’s not awesome? Not eating cake.

Cake makes everything in life better but with traditional dieting, you aren’t allowed to eat cake, which sucks.

Everyone needs more cake in their life (scientifically proven), so why not have a slice…or two, every night.

When you only eat one meal per day, you can afford to have some cake every night since your calorie budget is so much bigger.

Is coffee, water, tea, or diet soda okay during the fast?

Yes, as long as it’s zero calories, it’s fine.

Coffee and tea is actually a great appetite suppressant.

Eat 1-2 pieces of fruit during the day

While it’s totally fine if you can go the full day without eating anything, a lot of people do get hunger pangs no matter how much experience they have with intermittent fasting.

In this case, you can have 1-2 pieces of fruit throughout the day. This shouldn’t add up to any more than 200 calories plus you won’t feel a huge drain in energy compared to eating something high in carbs like a granola bar or a sandwich.

I recommend 2 large apples due to the large fiber and water content to keep you full

Supplement with some whey protein after you workout

If you train hard with weights 3-4 times per week while fasting (and you should) and follow the 1 meal per day diet then you should consume some 100% whey protein powder after working out so you don’t go half the day without any protein in your system.

I’m not really anal about the post workout “window of opportunity,” but it’s best to get some protein in within 2-3 hours after your workout.

Why 100% whey protein? Because it has the most complete amino acid profile which is great for muscle growth and recovery.

Eating one meal per day vs. other intermittent fasting protocols

Eating once per day is just one version of intermittent fasting.

And there are dozens of other fasting/feasting protocols out there that play with different fasting and eating windows.

But after looking at all of them, you’ll notice that the majority of them have the same underlying concept – fast for an extended period of time and get the majority of your calories in a small eating window.

Let’s look at some of the other intermittent fasting systems and how they compare to eating once per day.

One meal per day vs. 16/8 Leangains

If you follow Leangains, this means you’ll be fasting for 16 hours per day and eating for the other 8 hours.

During the 8 hour eating window, you’ll typically be eating 2-3 main meals.

There really isn’t a big difference between a Leangains style fast and eating once per day. The main difference is in the eating window and that all boils down to personal preference.

ESE forces you to create a massive calorie deficit on your fasting days while the one meal per day approach simply changes up your meal frequency but you still get the same amount of calories every day.

One meal per day vs. 2 meals per day

Nothing different here besides meal frequency. If you want to eat 2 meals per day, that’s fine, just make sure your overall calories are the same by the end of the day.

Can you mix and match different diet & fasting approaches

Absolutely!

I am all about diet flexibility.

If you want to follow the one meal per day approach one day and do 2-3 meals per day the next, that’s totally fine.

Remember, a calorie deficit is the most important thing to create when dieting.

So just because you’re following a one meal per day diet doesn’t mean you literally have to eat one meal per day, EVERY SINGLE DAY.

If you want to go out and have brunch on Sunday, then screw it, have 2 meals that day. Don’t be obsessive about this stuff.

The one meal per day FAQ

I’ve compiled a list of commonly asked questions from readers about eating one meal per day.

Hopefully this answers all your questions and gets you on the right path.

What kind of foods should you eat?

There isn’t any single food that you should or shouldn’t eat.

If you have specific macro/calorie goals, you still need to hit them. The only difference is you have the luxury of hitting them in a single meal so for those that like to eat a ton of food in one sitting, you’re going to love this way of eating.

But obviously, you need to get a hefty amount of protein, a good amount of carbs, and some fat.

So something like a massive steak, some roasted potatoes, a big ass salad, plus some cookies and ice cream would make for a pretty epic feast.

Hey Keith I am 8 days in on this one meal a day, and Im already down three pounds. I drink one cup of coffee in the morning and snack on fruit or crackers during the day. I also get 64 oz of water in as well. I workout 5 days a week and I come home and eat my meal and I’m instantly full! It doesn’t take as much to fill me up. Thanks for sharing this amazing post , I will be back at thwork end of the month to share my updated results 🙂